


No Justice; Catharsis

by sphekso



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: I don't endorse this behavior, Inspired by Real Events, It's not a real senator okay?, M/M, Murder, Revenge, TW: Related to Real-Life Shootings, Vigilante Justice, oh well, whatever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-21
Updated: 2016-06-21
Packaged: 2018-07-16 09:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7262809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sphekso/pseuds/sphekso
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the aftermath of a mass shooting that claimed dozens of lives and wounded countless more, Republicans in the US Senate voted against the passage of a commonsense amendment banning suspected terrorists from purchasing assault weapons. </p>
<p>Will and Hannibal have a big problem with that.</p>
<p>((Please read the disclaimer in the notes.))</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Justice; Catharsis

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER:  
> While the shooting in Orlando and the Senate vote are suggested, the people and situations in this story are fictitious. This includes the character of the senator, who is absolutely not based on a real person. Revenge is a very bad thing to engage in, and this was only meant to be cathartic to write and cathartic to read, not happy and positive. Make sure you can separate fiction from reality before proceeding. That said, enjoy.

Will sighed at the crumpled form on the floor and made a show of checking his watch. “Time’s wasting. Wake him up.”

Hannibal clucked his tongue. “All good things to those who wait.”

“I’m done waiting,” Will said. “I’ll do it myself.”

Hannibal took his hand. “You have many talents, Will, but you don’t have the fortitude for this.”

Will pushed his arm away. “And _you_ don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t?” Hannibal asked. “Why don’t you show me, then?”

Will didn’t reply. He took action instead. He advanced on their captive, set his foot his shoulder, and shoved him over onto his back. He flopped over like a human rag doll.

“My, but you’re eager,” Hannibal cooed.

“Quiet,” Will snapped.

“You wound me.” Hannibal sounded more amused than anything, and one look at his face could verify that. He was smiling wider than he had in ages. He seemed proud.

Will shook his head at the comment and returned his attention to the man on the floor. “Is he as out of it as he looks?” he asked, though he wasn’t looking for an answer, and Hannibal knew not to offer one. Will hauled back his leg and slammed his foot in the man’s side. The _crack!_ that followed told him he’d broken a rib, and the yelp that went with it told him he’d succeeded in waking the man up.

“It seems he’s up and about,” Hannibal said. “So to speak.”

The man looked up at Will with wild eyes. “What do y…” he croaked out, but before he could get speak the rest he fell into a coughing fit that contorted his body in pain. His hands strained against tight ropes behind his back.

“Good morning, Senator.” Will spoke the title like it was poison.

The man on the floor—the _senator_ —took a deep shuddering breath. “Am I a hostage? Are you as…” He gulped for air again. “…Assassins?”

“We’re two people with a job to do,” Will said.

“A j… job?” the senator asked in terror.

“I would call it more of a righteous mission, wouldn’t you?” Hannibal asked

“Sounds about right.”

“What mission?” the senator pressed.

“Put simply?” Will set his foot on the side of the man’s chest and applied just enough pressure to set his broken ribs on fire. “We’re going to kill you.”

The senator might have protested, but he was in too much pain for that.

“Pardon me, Will,” Hannibal said. “If I may?”

Will shrugged and gestured him forward.

Hannibal stepped up to the senator, crouched next to him, and met his terrified, burning eyes. The senator’s breathing slowed a little. “There, that’s better,” Hannibal said. “You can see how calm I am, can’t you? There’s nothing to fear.”

“But your friend said you’re going to…” The senator grimaced. “ _Kill_ me.”

“Ah,” Hannibal said. “That may well be true, but I can assure you, you need not fear death. Not you. You’re uniquely accustomed to it, aren’t you?”

The senator shook his head fast, not comprehending.

“Don’t bother talking to this trash,” Will said. He lifted his leg again for another good stomp. The senator screamed out in pain. “Cry all you like,” Will told him. “The walls are soundproofed.” He turned back to Hannibal and asked, “What’s your game?”

“I want him to know why. Don’t you?” Hannibal asked.

Will waited a beat in thought, then said, “You’re right. He should understand what led to this. Might make it more satisfying, too.”

Hannibal clapped his hands. “Perfect. As I was saying…” He reached out and smacked the senator’s cheek. His eyes had closed, but they shot open again at the strike. “You’re uniquely accustomed to death.”

The senator burned holes in his eyes even as his body began shivering.

“Is that a yes? A no? It doesn’t matter. We already know how close a relationship you have with death. You make life or death decisions all the time, don’t you? A man of your position has to contend with all sorts of moral issues…”

The senator groaned. “What are you even saying?”

“He’s talking about your vote today,” Will said.

“My vote…? You mean the…” The senator’s eyes shot wider still.

“The very one,” Hannibal said. “Do you understand now why I’m contemplating your relationship with death?”

“I didn’t… It was just an amendment,” the senator said. “It wasn’t even a bill, it was just—“

“Shut up,” Will spat. He reached into his pocket and pulled something out. Something gleaming. He unfolded it and held it up for the senator to see. “This belonged to a friend of mine,” he said, running his finger along its edge.

“…You’re going to use that on me, aren’t you?”

“That should be obvious by now,” Will said. “This friend of mine… he’s dead now. I doubt you know his name, but he’s been in the news lately. Along with dozens of others.”

The senator opened his mouth to speak, but snapped it shut as realization rushed over him. He swallowed hard and said nothing.

“I miss him very much,” Will said. “But you know, I’m more angry than mournful. Part of that is what happened to him, but right now… Right now I’m more angry with you than the shooter.”

The senator still said nothing. It seemed he knew that speaking would only dig him a deeper grave.

“I’m angry with you,” Will continued, “and your peers. Your whole fucking party. I can feel the rage bubbling under my skin even now. It wants to be let out.” He maneuvered the thing in his hand to reflect light on the senator’s eyes. “And you call yourselves pro-family? Unlikely. Only if the family in question is white and Christ-loving. And even then, who cares about the women? Not you. And god forbid they be anything other than perfectly straight.” He paused. “I might be a white male, but I’m also an atheist with a husband. How does that make you feel?”

Their captive shook his head a little. “It doesn’t—“

“Don’t even try to say _not all of you_ are like that. I know your voting record. After all,” Will said wryly, “you _are_ my senator.” He looked to Hannibal, who was still crouched next to their captive. “You said I didn’t have the fortitude? I’m about to prove you wrong.”

Hannibal stood up to touch Will’s shoulder. “Are you certain? This won’t be like Garrett Jacob Hobbs. There’s no going back from this.”

“Did you forget? I liked killing him.”

“You did, but you still killed him to save a life. This is simple revenge. I don’t wish this for you, darling. Let me carry this out for you.”

Will shook his head firmly. “This one’s mine.”

Hannibal patted his shoulder then withdrew his hand. He leaned in and placed a light kiss on Will’s lips. “Alright. I won’t deny you your quarry. Would you like privacy, or may I watch?”

“Do what you want,” Will said. “Just don’t interfere.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Who _are_ you people?” the senator moaned.

Will got down on his knees next to the senator and held out his prize. “See this razor? My dead friend used it to slice the stubble off his cheeks. I’m going to use it to slice a lot more from you.”

“Wait, wait!” the senator begged. “Your friend was one of the victims, wasn’t he? Of the shooting? Don’t dishonor him like this. Don’t kill like his killer did. Please!”

“No,” Will said. “I have a higher calling than that. All those people were innocent. What I’m doing is a public service.”

“This is all because of the amendment?”

Will nodded. He gently set the razor against the senator’s cheek. “I’m going to cut you now.” The senator let out a whimpering sob. “But first let’s take a quick moment to confirm some things. Answer honestly or I’ll make this much worse than it has to be.”

The senator nodded jerkily.

“You know about the shooting?”

Nod.

“Good. You know who the shooter was?”

Another nod.

“Do you know what kind of weapon he used to kill all those people?”

A beat, then a slow nod.

“A military-grade assault rifle. Isn’t that right?”

A hesitant nod.

“And he bought it legally. Didn’t he?”

No response. Sweat popped out all over the senator’s forehead. He was emitting low whines now.

“That’s alright. No need to nod anymore. I know you know all of it. You know he was on the terrorist watch list, and you know he bought the rifle anyway. _Passed_ his background check, in fact, because you people think even suspected terrorists are free to participate in their supposedly god given Second Amendment rights. So it was all perfectly legal.”

“I had nothing to do with tha—“

Will backhanded him hard. As his head rolled on his neck the razor cut into his cheek, drawing a streak of blood. “Huh. You bleed red. Red like your Grand Ol’ Party. And I know, you think you’re innocent in this. You didn’t sell the killer that rifle, so why should you suffer the consequences?”

“What do you _want_ —“

“Still with that?” Will snapped. “We’ve been over this. I want to kill you.”

“But why?”

“That amendment you mentioned? That _not-even-a-bill_ amendment? The _only thing_. The _only thing_ in that amendment was what? I want to hear you say it. What was the small, simple, commonsense solution in the amendment you and your Republican colleagues voted down?”

The senator’s lip quivered. Tracks of tears fell from his eyes now. “It… It would’ve added… It would’ve added more restrictions to the background check. That’s all. But I had nothing to do with the shooting—“

“That’s true, you didn’t. But think about it. If that amendment had passed a week ago—before the shooting—that man would’ve been barred from purchasing that assault rifle. He was on the watch list. So… what’s to stop it from happening again? I’ll tell you what was supposed to: _you_. _You_ were meant to stop it from happening again. _You_ were meant protect your constituents—no, your _fellow man—_ from harm. It says it right in the Preamble: ‘…to insure domestic tranquility… promote the general welfare…’ et cetera. I don’t know about you, but I think putting guns in the hands of terrorists runs counter to _tranquility_ and _general welfare_.”

“You’re really going to kill me,” the senator said quietly. He’d finally resigned himself to it.

“I am. Maybe it won’t benefit anyone other than me, but elected officials are meant to face the scrutiny of the voting public, aren’t they? You can consider this my _scrutiny_.”

“They’ll find you,” the senator said. “I’m a powerful man. People will look for me when I die. And when they find my body, they’ll come for you. You’ll rot with me.”

“Hmm, your body…” Will said, tapping at his chin. “I think once I’m done with you… Well, when it’s my husband’s turn to play there won’t be anything left of you but bones.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“He means,” Hannibal said with a vile glint in his eyes, “that I’m going to eat you.”

“Someone once said to honor every part of a hunted animal,” Will mused. “Otherwise it’s murder, he said.”

“Who said that?”

“No one anyone remembers,” Will said. His smile grew before he added, “But he’s dead now. When I killed him I didn’t follow his advice, but this time I _will_ honor every part of _you_.”

“Will you make it fast? Painless?”

“You should be so lucky. I have a lot of anger to work through. I’ll consider this art therapy. Are you ready?”

The senator shook his head.

“At least you’re honest. Let’s begin.”

The screams were deafening.

 

* * *

 

The Lecter-Grahams held a reception in memory of their fallen friend the next week. Everyone there knew him. Friends, family. People whose worlds had been shattered by the attack. They’d never heal from it. Not completely. Good people are always hit the hardest. Innocent people, people who never did anything to deserve that kind of horror. That black, sick, insidious horror.

The reception went as well as could be expected under the circumstances. It was comforting for most. Healing, even. People coming together and helping each other, that sort of thing.

As with all of Hannibal’s cooking, the food was exquisite.

The senator did not send his regards.


End file.
